Hundreds executed, thousands homeless - the human cost of fighting in Tigray
The breadth and depth of human suffering in the Ethiopian region of Tigray is perfectly clear to humanitarian workers, human rights groups and the international diplomatic community.
After four months of warfare between Ethiopia's national defence force and fighters from the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), observers are collecting a worrying selection of data.
More than 500,000 Tigrayans have lost their homes. Almost 60,000 have sought refugee status in neighbouring Sudan. Two refugee camps in Tigray have been obliterated by military force. Nearly 70% of 106 health facilities have been looted. Only 13% are functioning normally.
Allegations and stories about atrocities and human rights abuses have also surfaced, despite a government-imposed communications blackout.
Amnesty International has issued a report about the deaths of hundreds of people in the ancient Tigrayan city of Axum. Drawing on testimony from refugees in Sudan - and evidence given by phone in Ethiopia - the human rights group says Eritrean troops, who are allied with Ethiopian government forces, "carried out systematic house-to-house searches, extra judicially executing men and boys".
Read this shocking report from Sky News as they visit some of the villages and communities affected by the war and meet some of the people and hear their stories.
Responding to the Sky News report, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said he was "deeply concerned" and highlighted his trip to both Ethiopia and Sudan earlier this year.
"I think there's a number of things we need to do," Mr Raab said. "First of all, as I made it clear to the Ethiopian government when I was there, we need to see unfettered access for humanitarian purposes into Tigray so we get some proper facts we can verify, but also so we can support the vulnerable. "There's a risk of famine as well as the human rights abuses your correspondent was looking into.
Citing evidence of serious human rights violations in Tigray, the UN Human Rights Commissioner, Michelle Bachelet - and organisations like Amnesty International - have called for an immediate and independent investigation.
If the truth is not revealed, thousands more will lose their lives.
Pray: for doors to open so that the necessary humanitarian assistance will be made accessible for the millions of people whose lives have been impacted – the victims, the refugees, the bereaved.
Pray: for an end to the hostilities and for a path to peace to be brokered in what is a complex and deep-rooted situation.
Pray: for those who have committed war crimes to be brought to justice.
Pray: for peaceful and safe elections to take place.
More: PrayerCast | Operation World | Joshua Project
Hundreds of thousands have fled their homes as a conflict involving an Islamic State-linked group continues to grow dramatically.
Children as young as 11 are being beheaded in Mozambique, Save the Children has said, in the latest country to be affected by an Islamist insurgency.
The UK-based charity said it had spoken to families who have described "horrifying scenes" of murder, including mothers whose young sons were killed.
Thousands are dead and many magnitudes more have been forced from their homes, as a result of dramatically escalating fighting that has been linked to Islamic State (IS).
In one case, a woman hid with three children as her other 12-year-old was murdered nearby, Save the Children said. The 28-year-old, who the charity calls Elsa, is quoted as saying: "We tried to escape to the woods, but they took my eldest son and beheaded him. "We couldn't do anything because we would be killed too."
The Biden administration declared Mozambique's Islamist group a foreign terrorist organisation last week, in part because of its links to IS. The US said the group reportedly pledged allegiance to IS as long ago as 2018.
The first attack in Mozambique claimed by IS was in Cabo Delgado in June 2019. The region, in the country's far north, has been plagued by insurgency since 2017. Throughout 2020, the insurgents repeatedly engaged the military to capture and hold key towns.
While beheadings have always been a hallmark of the attacks, the brutality and mass killings have worsened, with the murder of around 52 people at once in the village of Xitaxi in April last year among them. So far, almost 2,700 people on all sides have died in the violence, according to consultancy Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED). Nearly 670,000 people have been displaced, according to Save the Children.
The US embassy in Mozambique said on Monday that American special forces will train Mozambican marines and provide medical and communications equipment to help Mozambique defeat the insurgency. It comes just a few months after the US military said all its troops had been pulled out of Somalia, further north in east Africa, where the government has been fighting al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab militants.
Amnesty International said earlier in March that all sides in the Mozambique conflict were committing war crimes, with government forces also responsible for abuses against civilians - a charge the government has denied.
The insurgency comes in the wake of a COVID pandemic that has hit the country hard and a devastating cyclone, in 2019, that rendered tens of thousands homeless.
Reporter: Philip Whiteside
More: https://news.sky.com/story/children-as-young-as-11-being-beheaded-amid-islamist-insurgency-in-mozambique-12247985
Pray: for the government of Mozambique, with the help of international partners, to restore security so that the huge numbers of displaced people can return to their homes in safety.
Pray: for the lives scarred by these horrendous attacks, for healing of memories and minds.
Pray: for the bereaved – that God will comfort them in their sorrow.
More Prayers: PrayerCast | Operation World | Joshua Project
Sri Lanka’s government should immediately withdraw an order that allows two-years of detention without trial for causing “religious, racial, or communal disharmony,” Human Rights Watch said today. The Prevention of Terrorism (De-radicalization from holding violent extremist religious ideology) Regulations No. 01 of 2021, issued on March 9, 2021, expands the draconian and abusive Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).
The regulation will allow the government of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to more easily target religious and racial minorities, in violation of their basic rights. The United Nations Human Rights Council is considering a resolution to strengthen monitoring and promote accountability for human rights violations in Sri Lanka, after the UN high commissioner on human rights identified “clear early warning signs … of future violations.”
“The Sri Lankan government has added a new weapon to its arsenal of abusive laws, putting religious and racial minorities at greater risk of torture and prolonged detention without trial,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Instead of addressing the UN’s concerns by repealing the notorious Prevention of Terrorism Act, the Rajapaksa administration is embracing it with a vengeance.”
The regulation broadly allows the authorities to detain and “rehabilitate” anyone who “by words either spoken or intended to be read or by signs or by visible representations” causes the commission of violence or “religious, racial or communal disharmony or feelings of ill will or hostility between different communities or racial or religious groups.” Instead of being tried, the suspect faces detention in a “reintegration center” for up to one year. The defense minister, currently President Rajapaksa, is empowered to extend the detention for a second year.
Sri Lanka’s relatively small Christian community has also been targeted. “You can’t even write anything on Facebook,” a Christian activist told Human Rights Watch. “Anything could happen. We don’t feel safe to express ourselves. They could lock you up under any pretext.”
The United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva is considering a resolution that would strengthen monitoring of Sri Lanka’s deteriorating human rights situation and create a mechanism to collect and analyze evidence of violations for use in future prosecutions. Several senior members of the current government are implicated in alleged war crimes and other grave abuses during Sri Lanka’s civil war.
Source: https://www.hrw.org/news/2021/03/16/sri-lanka-religious-disharmony-order-threatens-minorities
More: Read Stephen Kinnocks speech in the UK House of Commons, March 20th 2021 which raises a number of concerns surrounding the Sri Lanka government’s law-making and alleged ‘militarisation of the government’:
https://www.ukpol.co.uk/stephen-kinnock-2021-speech-on-sri-lanka/
Pray: that the Sri Lankan government will revoke this regulation and preserve and respect the rights of its people to practice their religion freely.
Pray: for those who seek to broker reconciliation of the ‘wounds’ from civil war and ethnic & cultural differences.
Pray: for the Church in Sri Lanka, that it will continue to grow and flourish despite the persecution.
Open Doors - Easter Prayers for the persecuted church. These are pertinent, just 2 years on from the 2019 church and hotel attacks: http://media.opendoorsuk.org/document/pdf/Easter-Prayers.pdf?_ga=2.241067648.2088753248.1586161764-492872149.1560337581
More Prayer: Operation World | Joshua Project | PrayerCast Video | Gospel for Asia
Learn more about the Muslim world, the month of Ramadan, and how you can pray.
Join the Movement
30 Days of Prayer begins April 13th, 2021.
Join together with thousands of others to pray for Muslims around the world! Buy a prayer guide, tell your friends, and help bring 30 Days to more churches, small groups and families.
Order PDFs and Printed Books in 40+ languages / nations and kids version at:
The is a one-week, online course, run by All Nations focused on training for intercessory prayer for the nations, with teaching and facilitation by prayer leaders from different countries.
Do you want to grow in your prayer life and learn to partner with God in what He is doing in the nations through prayer? Would you like to be better equipped to respond to world events, and engage in intercessory prayer to see God's Kingdom established “on earth as it is in heaven”? Come be part of an online learning community for a week, as we engage in God’s heart for the world through intercessory prayer!
Course Delivery:
This course is run via Zoom where participants will learn through online lectures, breakout group discussions, and corporate worship and intercession times. Hours of engagement include a two and a half session in the mornings (9:30am - 12 noon, UK Time), followed by another hour and a half session in the afternoons (2:30pm - 4pm, UK Time) from Monday through to the Friday. On Saturday, 24th April, there is the “Prayer Ignite” seminar for the month of April that has been integrated into this week-long course.
Topics covered for the week include:
The Character and Ways of God in Intercession
Listening to God in Corporate Intercession
Engaging in Prayer for our Covid-Plagued World
Biblical Worldview in Prayer & Missions
Worship, Prayer & Missions in the Global South
Prayer Ignite: History Belongs to the Intercessors
More info and sign up at: https://www.allnations.ac.uk/courses/short-courses/prayer-nations-course
We are pleased to bring you IPC Connections for February 2021.
Dr Jason Hubbard’s Editorial sets our theme for the year and is entitled ‘Igniting HOPE: Praying God’s Word in 2021’. It’s a challenging and encouraging article that shows us how to shape our prayers on the solid foundation of God’s Word. Jason illustrates the dynamic promises and commands in scripture that are the key to powerful intercession. Let’s be intent on listening and hearing God’s voice this year so that doors will open to “let him in!” Download the free resource booklet ‘Pray the Word’ which Jason has written especially for us.
On 1st January, we launched the Global Family 24/7 - 365 Online Prayer Room in association with several of our partner organisations. The vision is to host worship-saturated prayer around the throne, around the clock and around the globe for the whole of 2021. We have had some amazing times of prayer and worship already, led in many languages from each continent. Do join us at any time throughout the year as we, as a Global Family, worship the Lord in the beauty of Holiness (Psalm 96: 7-9).
Over the coming months, we will be introducing members of the IPC Council to you in these emails. We begin with a long-standing friend and colleague, Tom Victor who is also on our Exec Team and serves as a Senior Advisor.
Prayer Covenant - Despite the challenges of the global pandemic, a huge amount was achieved during 2020. A Prayer Covenant for Children / GO DECADE initiative partnered in an LQE Outreach in Africa during the last quarter of 2020 that saw 264,771 children and youth mobilised to share the Gospel with 5.8 million people. There were 301,907 commitments to Christ! More follows about this amazing outreach project in the article below. Do watch the inspiring video.
Take-Aways from 2020 - Graham Power from Global Voice of Prayer along with Dr Jason Hubbard and a number of colleagues shared their thoughts on what had been achieved during 2020 in this short video that we would like to bring to you.
Pandemic - As we are going to press, we are hearing of an eighth verified vaccine for Covid-19, with evidence of good efficacy. This really is encouraging news as the pandemic has now affected 101.6 million people worldwide with 2,195,871 sadly dying. We bring you up to date information on the situation along with prayer points and links to various resources. Let’s be in prayer that the vaccines can be distributed equitably to all nations without disputes, nationalism or politicisation of the process.
Situations Vacant – As our partner projects continue to develop and grow, we are finding an ever increasing demand for voluntary help with translation, technology / IT, social media, research and copy-writing skills. We would welcome enquiries from anyone looking to serve in these areas. Please email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Save the dates – A number of leaders from different ministries around the world have been gathering online to share what God has laid on their hearts to be doing in 2021. There is a desire for us to be collaborating like never before, in a spirit of John 17 unity, as we seek to reach the nations with the message of the Gospel. Please do check the dates in the calendar section below as you plan your events for this coming season; we would invite you to email your event details to us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
US Elections - We are so honored and thankful for all the prayer and intercession from the nations on behalf of America and our recent US Elections. We are trusting that God has heard our prayers and believing for an awakening across the body of Christ in response to those prayers! Even as deep darkness increases, and great shaking is coming, we know that the Lord will arise upon his people and the Gospel of the kingdom will be preached with power!
- In obedience to 1 Timothy 2:1-5, let’s pray for the Biden administration, for godly counsel, wisdom and the fear of the Lord to rest upon them.
- Let’s continue to pray for justice to be released in America, for any corruption to be exposed and dismantled in God’s timing and for God’s Glory!
- Let’s pray for a 3rd great awakening and a mighty harvest of souls. As the church in America, may we sanctify ourselves for a powerful move of the Spirit of God! As Jesus prayed, “Father sanctify them in the truth, your word is truth!” John 17:17
Thank you for continuing to partner with us in mobilising and informing united prayer across nations, denominations, movements, and generations for the fulfilment of the Great Commission.
May we express grateful thanks to Andy Page and the IPC Editorial Team who put this email together each month.
Every blessing,
Jason Hubbard - Director
International Prayer Connect
Please use this link if you would like to sow into our ministry with a donation Disclaimer…
The views and opinions expressed in IPC Connections and the articles on our website are those of individuals and our partner organisations. They do not necessarily represent the policies or views of IPC or its individual leaders.
We aim to respect the diversity within the prayer movement and yet embrace our unified calling to mobilise prayer for the nations. (2 Chron 7:14)
If you wish to discuss the appropriateness of any articles, please contact us.
For many of us this last year has been a year of the ‘unexpected,’ caught off guard by the surprising circumstances of 2020. I believe what the world needs now more than ever is HOPE. Our hope is not in the New Year, 2021, but in the one who makes all things new!
Hope is the joyful expectation of God’s goodness coming our way in every area of our lives. Hope is always future orientated. It is a vision of God’s good future before us, meaning where you are going is better than where you are and where you are coming from. Our ultimate hope is discovered in seeing and savoring, prizing and praising, recognizing and relishing the glory of God in the face of Christ.
Christ is our HOPE! He is the summation of all the promises of God, the source of all the riches of God, now and forevermore. In Christ we have been given an inheritance of HOPE.
This glorious future is revealed to us through the written and reliable word of God! God promises, commands, and reveals himself to us through his written Word! When our prayers are shaped by the Word, we are building on solid ground. We are responding to who God is and what he is doing! We are claiming his promises, and obeying his commands… there is no better way to pray! The Scriptures declare to us that God is much better than we think he is, and is doing much more than we think he is doing and as we pray he will do even more for His glory and our good. As Paul prays in Ephesians 3:20-21,
“Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen”
Together we can Ignite Hope as we pray God’s word in 2021!
Fostering a culture of Hope is critical to effective and sustainable intercession! As Paul declares to us in 1 Cor 13:13, “Now these three remain, faith, hope and love but the greatest of these is love.” The greatest of these three is love, however I believe hope comes first. Hebrews tells us that faith is the substance of things hoped for. And of course we know that faith needs to work itself out in love (Gal. 5:6).
So we could look at this way: our hope is in hearing the music of the future, our faith is dancing to that music NOW! And our love is brining others into the dance with you! The song being sung is the beauty, majesty, and supremacy of Jesus Christ. Let’s create a culture of Hope-empowered prayer in 2021!
As we pray the Bible, we are pleading the good promises of God! Promises predict the answers by foretelling what to expect! They are the molds into which we pour our prayers. Promises like these, “call unto me and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things which you do not know” (Jer. 33:3). Promises like, “whatever things you ask for in prayer, believing, you will receive” (Matt. 21:22). Promises like, “if you ask me anything in my name I will do it” (John 14:14).
When we pray God’s word we pray from the answer … with the answer in mind! When we plead God’s promises we are praying from the answer to the answer! In intercession we are asking him what he asks us to ask him! As we ask according to his will and for his renown, his activity increases releasing his power, his love, and his truth! Five times in John 14-16, Jesus asks us to ask him or his Father, ‘in his name’ and then promises to do it! In this way not only does answered prayer satisfy us, it also delights the heart of God by fulfilling his own Word and accomplishing his own purposes!
“For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Isa 55:10-11).
We pray fervently to the ‘Lord of the Harvest to hurl forth laborers into the harvest fields’ … why? Because Jesus promised, ‘the harvest is ripe.’ We ‘go and make disciples of all nations’… why? Because he promised us that all authority in heaven and earth has been given to him and that he will always be with us even to the end of the age! We pray that every people group on the earth will hear the gospel, why? Because Jesus promised that the gospel of the kingdom WILL BE preached in every nation and then the end will come (Matt. 24:14). We pray Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven… why? Because he promised that the Knowledge of the Glory of the Lord would cover the earth as the waters cover the sea (Hab. 2:14).
There’s no better fuel for our prayers than the Bible. By praying Scripture, we are ensuring that our prayers are anchored to God’s truth and aligned with God’s will. If we don’t form the habit of praying the Scriptures, our prayers will almost certainly degenerate into vain repetitions around our immediate concerns, rather than God’s larger purposes. As Dennis Fuqua says, “Praying and meditating on Scripture is how his word produces his life and power in our lives. It is how the Spirit of God writes the Word of God on the hearts of the people of God.” The basic method is simple, “Open the Bible, start reading it, pause at every verse and turn it into a prayer” (John Piper).
According to Jesus, sitting at his feet and listening to his word is the most necessary thing in our lives! (Luke 10:41). Think about these promises of God’s word about God’s word!
- God’s Word releases God’s Fire within us! (Luke 24:32, Jer. 23:29)
- God’s Word sanctifies us and produces the life of Christ within us! (John 17:17, 2 Cor. 3:18, Rom. 12:2-3)
- God’s Word feeds us and nourishes us! (Matt. 4:4)
- God’s Word awakens and revives us (Psalm 119:107, 154).
- God’s Word washes us clean (Eph. 5:25b-27).
- God’s Word sets us free! (John 8:31-32)
- God’s Word gives us power to overcome sin and walk in purity (Psalm 119:9-10).
- God’s Word provides direction and guidance (Psalm 119:105).
- God’s Word is our weapon of warfare that tears down strongholds as we wield it in prayer (Eph. 6:18-9).
- God’s Word teaches, corrects and equips us to be effective in ministry (2 Tim. 3:16-17).
- God’s Word blesses us making us happy and joyful (Psalm 1, Psalm 119:1-2).
- God’s Word gives us Hope (Rom. 15:4).
“For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have HOPE”
So let’s pray and plead God’s promises and make the Bible our prayer book this year! Here is a link to a prayer guide full of bible promises that we can use!
We have a saying in our house of prayer, “little keys open big doors.” As we pray God’s word in 2021, we can be like little keys in the hand of the Lord to open up big doors called Awakening and Revival! And this can only happen out of the place of abiding intimacy and fascination with Jesus. Jesus said, “If you abide in me and my words abide in you, ask whatever you wish and it will be done for you” (John 15:7).
And as we listen and hear his voice this year, let’s open the door and “let him in!”
“If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him and he with me” (Rev. 3:20).
In the midst of increased shaking and uncertainty, let’s ‘Together Ignite Hope in 2021’ as we pray God’s Word!
Dr. Jason Hubbard
Download Jason’s free ‘Pray the Word’ Guide, - packed with teaching, outlines and practical advice on going deeper into praying the scriptures and unlocking the HOPE that we all share in Jesus.
This is an invitation to join in an extraordinary 24-7 / 365 Prayer Room that is running online for the whole of 2021! It is a partnership project between IPC and a number of international ministries and organisations.
Prayer and Worship leaders from every continent are facilitating each hour in 10+ languages.
Whether you are able to drop in for 5 minutes here and there or for hours or days at a time, you would be most welcome to join us as we worship and glorify the Lamb of God – and offer our prayers for the Church and its mission and the needs of the world.
More info and sign up at:
www.globalfamily24-7prayer.org/
To Christ be the Glory,
Jonathan Friz, 10Days | Dr. Jason Hubbard & John Robb, IPC | Dr. Jonathan Armstrong, AQ
Elizabeth Adleta, FPS | Soloman Lujan, the Seed Company | Jenny Oliphant, Ethne Prayer Team
This is the first of a series of articles that will introduce you to some of the Council members at IPC.
Tom Victor is one of our key global leaders at International Prayer Connect, and is respected across multi-national missions and prayer ministries around the world. He has been with IPC for 20 years during which time he has spoken at numerous events and conferences. He currently serves on the Executive team and is a Senior Advisor.
Tom has 8 years of pastoral experience in the Chicago and New York areas together with 15 years with the Christian Broadcasting Network.
While with CBN he served as Vice President of the Ministries Division where he led a staff of 500 employees and over 10,000 volunteers in 90 ministry centers worldwide.
Tom is also serving as Facilitator for the Go 2020 Kids Global Team and now leads the ministry Great Commission Coalition, committed to serving Christ's body to fulfil the Great Commission.
Tom was originally from Bellingham, Washington State, but is now settled in Texas.
We are copying Tom’s most recent report below which succinctly tells the story of some of his main activities, connections and involvements during 2020. It also conveys his calling and passion to ensure that the Gospel message is accessible to all peoples groups - and all ages - across the world.
A February prayer report looking at the opportunities and challenges of vaccinations, Covid-19 Hot Spots and some suggested Prayer Pointers with Links to Resources:
As of 29 January, the total global figure for people infected by Covid-19 stood at 101.6 million according to Johns Hopkins University. In addition to this, the recorded number who have died totalled 2,195,871.
Covid-19 hot spots
Here are those countries / regions which are currently showing high levels of infection:
The US continues to be the country with the highest numbers confirmed cases and deaths related to Covid-19 globally with figures at around 25,793,302 and 433,719 respectively. The daily infection rate has fallen steadily after a peak in late December to around 285,000 new cases per day and new deaths are projected at around 2939 a day (7 day average) according to Worldometer.
India is the second worst-hit country in the world pandemic after the United States based on case counts. The health ministry's 29 January figures reported 18,855 infections and 163 deaths in the past 24 hours - bringing the overall case count above 10.7 million and the death toll to 154,010. This is the lowest figure in 8 months and follows a steady decline since mid-September
In South America, Colombia and Brazil continue to see high levels of infection. There have been at least 9 million cases of the coronavirus in Brazil and 221,547 deaths. In Colombia, a leading politician and defence minister, Carlos Holmes Trujillo recently died with Covid-19, one of 52,913 deaths and over 2 million infected people.
New waves and Variants
The United Kingdom, Brazil and South Africa have identified new variants of COVID 19, all more infectious and potentially more deadly. These have had particular effects on the UK, which on 26 January passed 100,000 deaths due to Covid-19, and Brazil where the most vulnerable communities have been affected as ICU’s are overwhelmed and oxygen supplies are running low. The South African variant is of concern as it may reduce the efficacy of some vaccines, as well as being more transmissible.
Vaccines
12 months after the start of the pandemic it is worth reflecting that to bring this pandemic to an end, a large share of the world needs to be immune to the virus. The safest way to achieve this is with a vaccine. It is therefore right to thank God for the work of the many scientists who have defied expectations and, less than 12 months after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, risen to the challenge and developed vaccines that protect from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.
As of 28 January 86.7 million doses of various vaccines have been administered worldwide across 62 countries according to Ourworldindata. There are currently 6 vaccines being administered across the globe - The pharmaceutical organisations Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna and AstraZeneca have developed vaccines being widely distributed in western nations. Russia’s Gamaleya Research Institute has agreed to sell its Sputnik V vaccine to a number of countries while two Chinese manufacturers, Sinopharm and Sinovac Biotech, have signed deals with more than a dozen countries.
Additionally, new vaccines continue to emerge and add to potential worldwide capacity. A coronavirus vaccine developed by the US firm Novavax has been shown to be 89 per cent effective in preventing Covid-19 in clinical trials. Janssen, a subsidiary of US firm Johnson & Johnson, announced that its Covid-19 vaccine showed 66 per cent efficacy in an international trial. These results are based on a single dose of the vaccine, which makes it easier to administer than the two-shot vaccines that have already been approved. The company has said it will sell its vaccine on a not-for-profit basis.
Vaccines provide optimism for the future, however Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, outlined the ‘hope and hardship’ currently facing the continent where 25 million vaccine doses have been administered in 35 countries in the region, but 25 European countries are in partial/full nationwide lockdown due to high COVID19 transmission & new variants. He highlights the paradox of communities across Europe sensing an end is in sight with the vaccine but, at the same time, having to adhere to restrictive measures in the face of a new threat, which is causing tension, angst, fatigue and confusion.
Whilst this may be a problem for the rich western countries of Europe, the challenges of worldwide vaccine supply and the potential for vaccine inequality have been acutely highlighted in recent days. Dr Margaret Harris from the World Health organisation stated "Currently we are seeing squabbles amongst the cake by a few countries whilst there are lots of workers in countries that haven't even got access to the crumbs.” Most of the vaccines currently being distributed around the world have been used by 10 countries, and only two middle or low income countries have started to vaccinate.
Hope still rests on the COVAX initiative - established by the World Health Organization, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (Cepi) – which by mid-December 2020 had reached its target of securing two billion doses of various coronavirus vaccines for the world’s poorest nations according to the World Health Organisation’s Director General, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. Nonetheless, he still fears that ‘the world is on the brink of a catastrophic moral failure – and the price of this failure will be paid with lives and livelihoods in the world’s poorest countries.’
There are also concerns about the prioritisation and take-up rates for vaccinations among ethnic minorities. According to the British Medical Journal, globally, ethnic minority communities have been disproportionately affected by Covid-19. It goes on to highlight vaccine hesitancy among a range of communities, identifying lower levels of confidence in vaccination in several South Asian and other developing countries compared with Europe and the need for ‘Cultural Competence’ within Healthcare systems. In the USA, new President Biden has moved to address the disparity in levels of vaccination and wider healthcare for concerns for Black and Latino Americans.
Let’s Pray… Let us continue to declare that the novel coronavirus is defeated by the blood of Jesus.
We pray for divine intervention and for God's name to be glorified even as each nation and government tries its best to flatten the curve, prevent and lessen the impact of second and third spikes, manage the wave of new variants and finally arrest this epidemic.
We release wisdom, skill, and integrity upon our leaders.
We pray that leaders and nations will see their moral duty to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable people.
We pray for protection, wisdom and strength, for those working to bring treatment and comfort to the sick and their families.
We pray release and healing from mental illnesses as a result of the lock-downs.
We pray special grace and help for the vulnerable and lesser-developed nations.
We pray for refugees and displaced peoples. We pray against domestic violence and other crimes that have become rampant during lockdowns.
We give thanks that safe, effective, and affordable vaccines are being released. We pray for the continued development of a range of vaccines to supply the whole world. We pray that the vaccine will be accessible to all nations and plead generosity of spirit from the wealthier economies.
We continue to release faith, hope, and love over the peoples of the world. May the Church seize this opportune time to manifest Jesus our Lord and Savior to those who are seeking answers and peace.
Join in Online Prayers: World Prayer Centre, Birmingham, UK – Virtual House of Prayer
247 Prayer Coronavirus Prayer Room Additional Prayer Resources for Coronavirus
God and the Pandemic – Tom Wright
Beyond the Pandemic - Rev Dr Clifford Hill
A coronavirus prayer from Pete Greig
19 Things to Do in response to Coronavirus
Prophecy Today UK’s Responses to Coronavirus
PrayerCast Video and Prayer Briefing
CSM Nigeria Article
Lausanne Resources
Operation World EBook on the impact on Mission
WW11 Veteran Gets 180k Praying
On a lighter note… 50 countries affected by Covid 19 sing Amazing Grace in this video
Reporting from John Hopkins University: https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/data/mortality
Further data on Europe and the world: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/geographical-distribution-2019-ncov-cases